Articles about the Regency era
It’s almost time to break out the pumpkin (or apple, or pecan) pies, candied yams, cranberry sauce, and, of course, roast turkey. For many Americans, a family meal featuring traditional fare is the basis of a Thanksgiving celebration. But you may surprised, as I was, at just how far back in history our Thanksgiving tradition…
Royal births should be happy events, a cause for proclamations and national celebrations. However, more than 200 years ago this month, a highly anticipated royal birth in Regency England ended in a tragedy that rocked the nation and set off a race to produce a legitimate heir to the crown. Before we get into that,…
There must be something about the month of November and plots to kill the British king. The dastardly treason of Guy Fawkes and his band of conspirators is well-known, and the foiling of that plot is still celebrated more than 400 years after the event, marked with fireworks, parades and bonfires throughout Great Britain on…
Halloween may be over, but as we get into early November there are a few more British traditions that were likely familiar to anyone living in Regency England. The most obvious one is Guy Fawkes Day. November 5, 1605, is the date that the infamous Gunpowder Plot was foiled, preventing Guy Fawkes and his…
What is it about ghosts and theaters? There seems to be something about the excitement and intense emotions exhibited during a performance that encourages spirits to hang around, like afterlife groupies hoping to get invited backstage. In my last post I talked about the ghosts who haunt the Theatre Royal Bath. However, ghostly apparitions…
With Halloween approaching, I thought it would be fun to talk about ghosts. And not just any ghosts, but the ghosts that haunt Britain’s historic theaters. These old theaters are rife with ghosts and psychic phenomena. Curiously, a lot of those ghosts are known individually as the Grey Lady, though they each have a different…
But much mocked And even opposed by the respectable and upright
Step aside, Hammersmith Ghost. There were other specters who spooked Regency imaginations and inspired the popular press. Here are a few noteworthy examples: Queen Elizabeth I Here’s a phantom that must have haunted Napoleon’s nightmares in the early years of the 19th century while he was planning to invade England. In this 1803 print published…
Will you be dressing up this Halloween? If you love the simple elegance of a white ghost costume, you may want to hear about a Regency “ghost” who met an untimely and undeserved end. In late 1803 the residents of Hammersmith (which is now a part of Greater London but was then a small village…
On the 1st of each month, Regency Fiction Writers publishes our FREE online newsletter, The Regency Reader, to anyone interested in Regency Fiction (1780-1840). The publication features author interviews, tidbits about the Regency era, and a listing of new titles from members and non-members. Members’ releases also appear here on the blog. Submit your September…